


Don't Be So Pretentious

by SpoopyJim



Series: Twenty Øne Piløts [12]
Category: Bandom, Twenty One Pilots
Genre: Abusive Relationships, Alternate Universe - High School, Dermatophagia, F/M, Fluff and Angst, Hopeful Ending, Hurt/Comfort, Implied/Referenced Self-Harm, M/M, Prom, Prom King, Prom Queen, Unhealthy Relationships, double standards
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-30
Updated: 2020-04-30
Packaged: 2021-03-02 02:35:20
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,195
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23917657
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SpoopyJim/pseuds/SpoopyJim
Summary: When Josh's cheek burns from the contact of flesh on flesh, he expected gasps of horror. He expected a teacher called, he expected someone to ask if he was okay.Instead, he heard cheers."You go girl!" Someone yelled."He must have done something bad to deserve that." Another person mused.Josh tried not to cry.
Relationships: Josh Dun/Debby Ryan, Josh Dun/Tyler Joseph
Series: Twenty Øne Piløts [12]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1723666
Kudos: 38





	Don't Be So Pretentious

**Author's Note:**

> I don't see a lot of abusive girlfriend fics ever, almost like there's a double standard and a lot of people don't believe it's a thing. Weird.
> 
> Anyways, this is based on that one vine where Debby pretended to punch Josh and he pretended to be knocked over, and also Putting A Spin On Listen Before I Go by Egg. Yes, that specific version, not the Billie Eilish one. 
> 
> And other weird vines of theirs.

Josh Dun was tired, exhausted even, leaning on the lunch table with his face in his palm. Debby had run him ragged with their prom work- Debby was a shoe in for prom queen, and Josh was supposed to be prom king.

It made sense to Josh, he had just never cared about it. He thought the title of prom king was better suited for someone amazing, like Brendon, or his best friend Tyler, or Mark.

Instead, Debby was very adamant that it had to be Josh.

Josh’s jaw ached a little remembering the argument they had had the night before, when Josh was ready to quit, didn’t care about posters or prom or a crown- and Debby had punched him.

It had been enough to nearly knock Josh off his feet, completely unexpected- or maybe it shouldn’t have been.

It hadn’t been the first time that Debby had hit him, but she promised it was the last- he was just stressing her out even more than she already was. 

Josh apologized for being selfish.

Josh was hiding a light bruise on his chin, explained away by falling off the bed and slamming his face into the ground. 

Gerard gave him a sideway glance, but everyone else just accepted it.

Josh’s eyes completely shut, nearly falling asleep right there at the lunch table.

Before Tyler could do what he wanted (tell Josh to lay his head down, put his jacket on Josh and watch his best friend get the rest he needed), Debby was there.

Tyler’s lips turned downward, grumbling a little to himself.

Debby patted Josh’s chest, causing the half asleep drummer to jolt awake.

“Come on, honey.” Debby said happily. “It’s time to work on your speech again.” 

Josh whimpered quietly. “Again?”

Josh had horrible stage fright, especially without Tyler. Tyler knew that, so he didn’t even understand why Josh wanted to do anything for prom. Tyler was still upset they weren’t going to go together as friends anymore, now that Debby was in the picture.

Josh waved goodbye, and Tyler pouted as the other was dragged away.

“Ugh, I hate Debby.” Tyler confessed, quiet.

Brendon’s eyes widened. “Wow, strong word.”

Tyler played with the table. “Strong feelings… I feel like she’s taking Josh away from us…”

“She literally took Josh away from us.” Mikey interjected, and Tyler gestured to Mikey; he was right!

Dallon looked away from whatever game he and Ryan were playing. “Talk to Josh?”

Tyler sat up straighter. “Yeah, I should.”

=====

Debby was getting annoyed with Josh’s drumming. 

Josh had asked for a break, while Debby stayed over at his house for more work, more planning, more bullshit.

Josh cringed a bit. He hated thinking like that, but he was so tired. Debby was the worst she had ever been in the whole year they had been together, and Josh wished she would go back to normal. He knew it was only until prom was over, and they were crowned, and then Debby would go back to normal.

But he hated prom with a passion at this point.

As he let out his feelings on the drums, he didn’t notice Debby coming up to him until she yelled, “HEY!”

Josh jolted, nearly dropping the drumsticks and looking up at Debby with wide eyes, mildly afraid.

Debby looked disappointed. “You’re too loud.”

Josh’s cheeks flushed with shame, and he put the drum sticks away after Debby left the room. He missed when Debby would laugh and feed him some cheezits as he played, both of them a mess of happy giggles.

Josh didn’t feel happy.

Josh sighed, moving to lay on his bed and shut his eyes. He still needed a break, and if he wasn’t allowed to play the drums…

Less than a half hour later, Debby was back to end his break.

Josh peeled his eyes opened and sighed, going to help Debby with whatever she had needed help with, and to go over their dance again.

====

Josh hated fighting with Debby.

It wasn’t like he ever won anyways, but the worst part was making Debby feel bad after she had lashed out, due to Josh doing a pretty terrible job at being a boyfriend.

Josh had promised to hang out with his friends after school, help them with posters about something Josh cared about even more than prom; a music competition. They weren’t all going to work together of course, but Josh was paired with Tyler.

And he was excited.

Before Debby came over.

“She’s coming.” Brendon pointed toward Debby, as Josh looked back at his girlfriend.

“Hey babe-” Josh started, getting cut off by a kiss from the girl.

Debby smiled. “Hey, honey! So I don’t want you to hate me…” Debby hesitated, glancing at Josh’s friends before playing with her hair in a show of nervousness.

Josh’s eyes widened. “Hate you? Of course not, what’s wrong?”

Tyler watched intently, not trusting this. At all.

“So, you know how I already picked a dress?”

Josh glanced at his friends, before cocking his head. “Yeah…?”

“It turns out _Sara_ picked out the same exact dress! So we need to go to the one of a kind shop tonight, and get them to make me a better dress.”

Josh’s expression broke a bit. “Tonight? But I was supposed to-”

“I know, that’s why I told you not to hate me…”

Josh looked over at his friends, who all looked some form of upset. Tyler was the one taking the news worst.

Josh’s stomach twisted.

“I… Can’t you go on your own?”

He heard one of the Ryans wince.

Debby blinked, nervous act disappearing for a moment. “On my own?”

“Well yeah! I don’t need a dress, but I did promise to help with the-”

“On my own?” Debby repeated, cutting Josh off.

Josh cringed, looking down at the floor. “... yeah, you’re right…”

Debby smiled. “I’m really sorry about this, okay Joshie? I’ll make it up to you. I promise.”

Josh slumped, watching Debby walk off. He leaned onto the lunch table, whatever happiness he had gained that day from the excitement of the competition immediately drained away.

“... hey, you’ll still be there for the actual competition this weekend.” Gerard tried to comfort him, and Josh gave a tight smile. 

“Yeah. At least there’s that.”

====

Tyler and Josh were sitting on Tyler’s roof.

It had been way too long since they had gotten to hang out, just the two of them- Debby was out of town for the weekend, thankfully, so Tyler and Josh were having a sleepover Friday to Saturday, then doing the competition Saturday night, then having another sleepover Saturday to Sunday.

Tyler was ecstatic about the plan, but there was still something else, an elephant in the room.

Josh was staring down at the floor, over the lip of the roof, and Tyler coughed for Josh’s attention.

“You don’t still think about jumping off, do you?”

“Haven’t in a long while, still healthy.” Josh said back, blandly. 

Tyler blinked, before nodding.

In truth, Josh really hadn’t thought about jumping, but there was still some part of him that believed he was horrible, and deserved to be punished for it.

He just knew that death wasn’t the punishment he deserved. 

Josh sniffled a bit, causing Tyler to look over in shock.

“Josh?”

Josh gave a sob, a breaking smile on his lips. “Sorry Tyler, I’m just so tired these days.”

“You can get some sleep now, if you need…” Tyler tried, but Josh shook his head.

“Not that kind of tired, buddy…”

Tyler was close now, arms wrapping around Josh.

“Hey, if this is about the whole prom thing, or even the music competition, don’t worry so much about it, okay? Your happiness and stuff is worth more than all this, okay?”

Josh nodded numbly, but he didn’t really believe that.

Part of him had worried that Tyler would get upset about the music competition, just like Debby with prom, but he was at ease now.

Tyler wasn’t like that.

Tyler was patient with Josh.

Josh continued to cry.

====

“That was amazing!” Tyler’s cheers took over the empty parking lot.

Josh’s arms were jelly, and Drummer Ryan nudged him a bit.

“You did great.”

Josh’s cheeks hurt from his large smile, arms outspread to the world. 

Their laughter healed his soul a bit.

He felt good.

====

And then Debby got angry in the middle of lunch.

Josh wasn’t following what she was upset about, but they were standing in the middle of the lunch room in hushed, drowned out whispers that thankfully no one was hearing.

“Josh, I ask you to do this one thing-”

“One thing?” Josh asked incredulously, before he could even stop himself.

And then Debby’s hand darted forward. 

When Josh's cheek burns from the contact of flesh on flesh, he expected gasps of horror. He expected a teacher called, he expected someone to ask if he was okay.

Instead, he heard cheers.

"You go girl!" Someone yelled.

"He must have done something bad to deserve that." Another person mused.

Josh tried not to cry.

Even his friends didn’t do anything, but looking over at them showed that at least _they_ were horrified.

Debby grabbed Josh’s wrist tightly, and yanked him to follow her out the lunchroom.

“You know, if you ever need another hand to keep him in line.” A girl joked, smiling brightly up at Debby.

Josh’s cheeks flushed in even more shame, as Debby gave a soft laugh.

“I’ll call you if I need the help.” She joked back, though something in her voice betrayed she was still upset at Josh.

The girl empathized with Debby.

No one empathized with Josh.

====

“Does she hit you a lot?” Brendon asked, as the group gathered in Josh’s basement.

Josh sipped at whatever drink his mother had passed out to everyone. He shrugged.

“Sometimes, but it’s not that bad.”

Gerard rolled his eyes. “Yeah, that’s what they want you to think. But no one should hit anyone when they’re in a relationship.”

Josh didn’t bring up that only his friends seemed not okay with it.

Tyler was angry.

“God, she’s forcing you to do whatever she wants, she’s hitting you- what’s next, she’ll take away your drums?”

“She kinda already has.”

Tyler looked over at Josh in horror. “What?”

“Whenever she’s over, she gets mad at me for using them. When she came back after the competition though... “ Josh stared down at the swirl of juice in his cup. “Uh, they’re off getting repaired.”

“She broke your drums.” Dallon said, slowly.

Josh rubbed his leg. “It’s alright, I wasn’t paying enough attention to h-”

Tyler stood up fast. “No! She’s just- she-”

Brendon tried to calm Tyler down, as Josh cringed and curled up a bit.

Tyler mellowed, giving a sad look. “Jeeze, Josh…”

Josh nodded.

Yeah, he understood.

====

A policeman walks by them when Debby smacks Josh over the head multiple times with her purse.

He didn’t do a thing.

====

Josh watched as Debby rifled through his things, holding his arms to his chest. “Debby…”

“You cut.”

Josh flinched.

Debby looked up at him, wild anger in her eyes. “You said you were clean.”

“I was…”

“Yeah, but you still own what you can hurt yourself with, huh?”

Josh watched Debby continue her tirade through his things.

He watched as Debby took everything he could use to hurt himself with, before moving to jab Josh in the chest with her finger.

“Those better be healed by prom.”

Josh cried when Debby left.

====

Another fight in public, and people laugh at Josh when she pulls his hair.

He doesn’t cry in public, but in the bathroom, he nearly vomits with the force of his sobs.

Someone gives him a weird look- How could someone be so pathetic? their expression says.

Josh doesn’t know himself.

====

Josh’s head laid in Tyler’s lap, eyes half lidded as Tyler carded his fingers through Josh’s hair.

Josh’s hair is a boring brown, something Debby said would look more presentable.

Josh’s hair is horrible.

Tyler’s fingers in it, while comforting, was just reminding him of how he looked… weird, wrong.

Josh shuddered.

Tyler wiped away some tears that dripped down Josh’s face.

“Hey, Joshie…”

Josh exhaled in response.

“... Let’s get some hair chalk.” Tyler offered. “Or that like… spray on color. I know it’s not the same, but…”

Josh nuzzled Tyler’s thigh, cutting the taller boy off.

“Yeah, that sounds fun…”

====

Josh dodged the book Debby threw at his head, but it still hit his arm, causing the drummer to give a whine of pain.

Debby rolls her eyes.

“I didn’t even throw it that hard.”

====

“You really need to break up with her.”

Josh looked up, eyes half lidded. He was back in lunch, his friends looking over at him.

Josh knew what he looked like.

He looked boring, and tired, but he looked fine.

There’s no bruises on his face- Debby resorted to slaps now, more painful, and less lasting impressions. The closer they got to prom, the more careful Debby was with what Josh looked like.

His hair was a rich black, but it wasn’t what he had wanted.

When people told him they liked it this way better, it just killed his soul more.

But other than something broken in his eyes, and black hair, Josh didn’t look hurt.

He didn’t look abused, because he wasn’t abused!

Besides, a woman couldn’t be abusive.

“Break up with her? So close to prom? She’d have my head.”

Drummer Ryan leaned over the table. “Josh, don’t let someone trap you in a relationship.”

Josh’s cheeks flushed.

He hadn’t even gone for ‘I love her’; he went for ‘She would be angry’.

“I- Well she’s not, I don’t even want to break up with her.”

Brendon shook his head.

Josh hugged himself, before looking up with a breaking smile when Debby made her way to them again.

He frowned when he noticed how sad Debby was.

“Are you okay?”

Debby sat down next to Josh, resting her face in her arms. “You love me, don’t you Josh?”

Josh blinked in surprise. “What-? What brought this on?”

“Josh, just answer.”

Josh blinked a few times. “Yeah, of course.”

Debby glared over at Tyler, and Tyler felt something icy in his stomach.

“Then tell Tyler to stop leaving notes and hair spray in your locker!” She shoved the note into Josh’s hands, and Josh paled, before flushing.

Debby had read the letter.

That… hurt.

“You went through my locker? And read notes to me?”

Debby sneered a little. “I’m glad I did, because it looks like you’re cheating on me with a _guy_.”

Debby sighed. “Now, if you’re into guys, whatever. But you have to tell me if you are, because then I really need to know if I should be monitoring your ‘guy time’ better.”

“Maybe just trust your boyfriend!” Brendon responded.

Debby glared over at Brendon, and then at Josh. “Come on, honey. We’re going to have lunch together.”

Josh opened his mouth. “But-”

Debby grabbed his wrist tightly, and Josh stumbled after Debby as she yanked him over to sit with her friends that lunch.

“Yeah, Josh is bisexual.” She tells them, even though Josh never said that.

“I can’t let him hang out with his friends without my supervision anymore. I knew their relationships were weird.” She adds, and Josh felt himself die inside.

====

Josh wants to self harm, but Debby already took all of his things.

He starts biting at his knuckles until they bleed.

Debby screams at him the next time they see each other.

Debby forces him to wear gloves.

====

It was finally prom night.

Josh had gloves on, hiding bites and bruising from his new found habit that Debby slaps him for whenever she catches him.

Josh couldn’t control it though, now that he had started.

Josh looked out at the sea of people, relaxing when he saw his friends.

He missed them so much, but Debby had a tighter reign on him now.

Now that she thought he was bisexual.

And maybe he was, but he hadn’t told her that, so it wasn’t fair for her to just think that. Especially unfair for her to tell all her friends.

He sipped at punch, wondering what he looked like to strangers, as he gave breaking smiles to anyone who greeted him.

His smile became real when Tyler went up to him.

“Tyler-!” Josh said excitedly, and Tyler gave a sad smile back.

“I miss you, dude.” Tyler confessed, and Josh gave Tyler a large hug.

Debby smacked Josh upside the head when she saw it.

“Hey, Josh. Don’t.” Debby glared at Tyler, who looked upset. Tyler looked up at sad, dying inside Josh, then to Debby.

“Josh can do whatever he wants.”

Josh seized. “Tyler-”

“What?” Debby took a step toward Tyler, glaring up at the taller boy.

Josh’s lungs stopped working. 

“H-Hey guys, please don’t fight-”

Debby kept her composure though, and instead gave a cold smile. “I would never fight on prom night. It’s supposed to be a magical night. Let’s go be magical somewhere else, Josh.”

Josh winced when Debby grabbed onto his hurt hand tightly, and slumped when he was dragged off.

Tyler looked heartbroken, and god, Josh’s heart felt the same.

When prom queen nominees were called, his friends booed at Debby’s name.

Josh tried not to laugh.

Josh ended up winning with Debby, because of course they would, and Josh had a panic attack during the speech Debby had so carefully crafted for him.

He didn’t remember much after the initial panic; Tyler had run up to the stage to calm Josh down, Debby had gotten upset, and Josh just wanted to go home.

Prom was awful.

====

Even when Josh was finally able to break up with Debby after prom (She wasn’t as upset as she would have been before. She was still angry, angry enough to throw things and hit Josh and make fun of his hands, but she didn’t refuse.), his gloves stayed on.

Josh still chewed, worrying him. He was probably going to have this stupid habit, need to bite forever now.

Debby spread the rumor of his hands at some point, but Josh couldn’t care less at that point.

He didn’t care that he was hated by everyone besides his friends for the time being.

Because Brendon held him close and asked him to please stop biting, Drummer Ryan had mock drum battles with him, Gerard invited him over to read comic books, and Tyler kissed him on the lips.

Josh wondered if this was what healing was supposed to feel like.

When Tyler tucked himself into his arms, different from Debby and warmer than her too, he knew it was.

Josh was healing.

And even when he chewed, his friends didn’t hate him for it.

School finished and Josh was okay.

“I love you guys.” Josh had said once, after everything was over and he the movie the group had watched ended.

The chorus of ‘love you’ backs made him smile.

And Tyler kissed him on the lips again.

And Josh was alright.

**Author's Note:**

> AU where it's a huge poly and they're gay and cute and


End file.
